Buying a property "to renovate" or "with potential" means betting on what you can make of it. The risk: paying for potential that does not exist — or missing a constraint that will sink the project. Before you make an offer, a few checks turn the bet into an informed decision.
The price of a property to renovate is a bet
A seller readily talks up "the potential": a storey to add, an attic to convert, an outbuilding to transform. But that potential only has value if it is authorised. A property can look ideal yet turn out to be capped by an already-exhausted index, a ceiling on height, a building line in the RDPPF or a no-build easement invisible in the listing.
The golden rule: never pay for potential you have not verified.
The checks before you make an offer
Zone and building potential
What buildable capacity is left? Are an added storey or an extension permitted by the zone, the index and the building envelope? This is the heart of the value.
RDPPF and easements
Enforceable public restrictions (RDPPF) and easements in the land register can neutralise theoretical potential — to be checked before, not after.
Energy condition
Insulation, heating, windows: the scale (and cost) of the renovation depends on the real condition. In some cantons, replacing a heating system now requires renewable energy.
Available subsidies
Part of the works is subsidised. Estimating the subsidies refines the real budget — and therefore the fair purchase price.
The new tax factor: 2029
The reform of housing taxation changes the buyer-renovator's calculation. From 1 January 2029, the imputed rental value disappears, but maintenance and renovation costs will no longer be deductible for an owner-occupied home (mortgage interest is also heavily restricted, with a temporary deduction for first-time buyers). In practice, a major works programme carried out after the switch will no longer deliver today's tax saving — a parameter to factor into the financing plan. The ins and outs are set out in our guide on the abolition of the imputed rental value.
The most cost-effective due diligence
On a property purchase, having buildability checked costs a fraction of the price — and it is the most cost-effective check of all, because it bears on the very value of the property. Our guide checking a plot before buying sets out the full checklist.
For an initial sort — comparing several properties, ruling out those with no real potential — a parcel report gives you the framework in a few minutes from an address: zone, building rights, RDPPF constraints, and what remains to be confirmed with the notary and the land register. Enough to negotiate on facts rather than on a promise.